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Tag "vitamin D"

Vitamin D deficiency is often found in patients with headaches and neuralgia, which I’ve already mentioned in previous posts.  Chronic pain patients with low vitamin D levels were also found to have poor exercise tolerance, making their rehabilitation more difficult.  Now, there is strong evidence from two independent studies, which involved over one thousand people, that those with low vitamin D levels were twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease, other types of dementia, and strokes.  The researchers and those commenting on this research called for more studies before any recommendations can be made.  This response of the medical establishment is typical in its lack of common sense.  Yes, there are dangers in taking too much vitamin D, but shouldn’t they call for doctors to test for this deficiency and correct it when it is present?  Even if we don’t know exactly if this supplementation will prevent strokes, Alzheimer’s or headaches, it makes sense to keep everyone’s level in the middle of the normal range.

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Vitamin D deficiency has become a very popular topic in lay and professional literature, and deservedly so.  Vitamin D is important not only for bone health, but for normal functioning of many organs.  Its deficiency appears to be much more common than it was previously suspected.  Dr. Steve Wheeler has found vitamin D deficiency in 42% of 55 patients with chronic migraine headaches.  He presented these findings at the recent meeting of the American Headache Society.  We do not have evidence that taking vitamin D will help relieve headaches, however if a deficiency is present correcting it can certainly improve overall health of the patient.  One possible cause of what appears to be increasing incidence of vitamin D deficiency is widespread use of prescription and over-the-counter antacids.  Reducing stomach acidity helps relieve heartburn and other symptoms of reflux, but it may also interfere with absorption of vitamins and minerals.

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We always recommend exercise as one of the most effective preventive treatments for migraines and tension-type headaches.  However, it appears that some patients may have difficult time exercising because of low vitamin D levels.  Vitamin D receptors are located within muscle and are important for normal muscle activity.  Michael Hooten and colleagues discovered that pain clinic patients who had low vitamin D levels had lower exercise tolerance as well as lower general health perception than patients with normal levels.  Most people are familiar with the role of vitamin D in bone health.  However, it has many other functions in the body.  In addition to exercise tolerance, another unexpected effect of vitamin D deficiency is to worsen symptoms of gastro-esophageal reflux, which causes heartburn and other symptoms.  Taking vitamin D supplements relieves reflux symptoms in some patients.  Many people are not taking sufficient amounts of vitamin D.  If deficiency is documented by a blood test, patients usually need to take 1000-2000 units a day.

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